Nine people have been confirmed dead following an explosion along Court Road in Sabon Gari, Kano State earlier today.
The explosion, which occurred opposite a private secondary school, Winners School, destroyed a residential building and affected part of the school.
The explosion occurred around 9:30 am with many schoolchildren affected.
The Kano State Commissioner of Police, Sama’ila Dikko, who visited the scene, clarified that gas and not a bomb exploded in the state.
Dikko, who spoke in Hausa, also confirmed that four persons were dead but moments later the National Emergency Management Authority reported that nine bodies have been pulled out from the scene of the blast.
Visuals of the incident showed several injured schoolchildren crying for help.
Some parents were seen rushing to the scene to rescue their children.
“Where are my children?” one parent shouted.
While some injured schoolchildren have been rescued, others were stranded at the scene before the arrival of emergency responders.
The National Emergency Management Agency and Fire service operatives were also on the ground trying to rescue victims of the explosion.
Meanwhile, the Kano State Government clarified that the early Tuesday morning explosion in the Sabon Gari area did not occur in a school.
The state Commissioner for Information, Muhammad Garba, said the incident happened at an animal feed store opposite the school along Aba Road, Sabon Gari area of Fagge Local Government.
